Bars come in a wide variety of flavors and formats, from crunchy baked products to chewy ones that may or may not be baked. Bakers manufacturing them face a number of challenges, depending on the type of bar they’re making. Some are sticky, which necessitates certain sanitation protocols for equipment to ensure proper cleaning. Others may be fragile and require careful handling.

And of course, manufacturers want lines that operate at maximum efficiency and speed. That’s a tall order in the packaging department, one that leaves little room for error.

“I would say the biggest challenge is consistency in the product. When it varies, especially at the speeds bar lines typically run, which is quite fast, if they’re not consistent with shape, it wreaks havoc,” said Mike Alexander, sales manager for the Eastern United States and Canada, Formost Fuji. “At 50 a minute, it’s not a big deal. At 500 a minute, it changes everything. If they’re stuck together or there are cling-ons on the back or front, you end up with a traffic jam.”

The need to produce more sizes and SKUs means bakers are seeking equipment that is versatile enough to run a variety of products. According to PMMI’s “Snack Foods Packaging Trends” report published in October, the biggest change expected in snack packaging is a proliferation of different types of packaging, sizes and SKUs. Other anticipated changes include the need for longer product shelf life and sustainable packaging, creating more challenges.

In addition to the need for product consistency on bar packaging lines, equipment must be able to handle delicate items at speed without damaging them.

“Certain bars — especially those with toppings or inclusions — can crack or crumble,” said Yasha Shamayeli, director marketing strategy, Plan It Packaging. “Using gentle product handling systems, such as conveyors with minimal drop points, helps protect product integrity.” 

Also important to the success of bar packaging lines is keeping product in defined rows through the processing area.

“When they are delivered to the packaging room from the cooling tunnel or spiral, those rows are still well-defined,” said Josh Becker, bakery and confection segment manager, Harpak-Ulma. “Good process control by the baker is going to be the best solution to overcoming the challenges with packaging bars.”

Packaging needs vary based on where the bars will be sold, so bakers must have a variety of options available.

“The bars can be packaged in cartons, shelf-ready boxes or multipack bags,” said Luc Jamet, project manager, Schubert North America. “Varying numbers of pieces per sales unit and numerous bar formats must also be taken into account, as well as increasingly stringent sustainability regulations. ... To present themselves efficiently in the market, manufacturers today must have highly flexible packaging machines.”

Selecting equipment with the right infeed can reduce damage and ensure success on bar lines.

“Choosing between touch and no-touch infeed depends on both the nature of the product and its price,” said Mark Lozano, vice president North American operations, SACMI Packaging and Chocolate USA. “No-touch infeeds are advantageous as they prevent products from adhering to each other and lessen the pressure applied during feeding into a flow wrapper, thereby reducing damage.”

Variances in process and ingredient control can influence the challenges on bar lines.

Cooling processes have an impact on the ease of handling, Buckley said. Regimented cooling control will give manufacturers the option of considering robotic systems or other automation. 

Bill Kehrli, vice president sales and marketing, Cavanna Packaging, identified sanitation as one of the largest challenges when making chewy granola bars.

“That would be the biggest problem I see people having,” he said. “It’s very hard to clean, and it’s very hard to get past an allergen clean when you’re introducing different allergens. The oils from the allergens get on the equipment.”

He mentioned the difficulties of ensuring each piece of equipment that touches the bars are cleaned as well. Cavanna’s systems allowing bars to go from cooling tunnels to wrapping without touching anything is helpful with sticky bars.

“It’s a lot of belt cleaning,” he said. “Sticky bars are a challenge. With the baked bars, you have challenges with crumbs and managing crumb mitigation is a challenge. Every bar has its own unique challenge.”

This article is an excerpt from the March 2025 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on Bar Packaging, click here.